Chicago’s famous deep dish pizza may be its claim to fame, but the city also provides a wide variety of other pizza styles. Including square Detroit-style, quick-fired Neapolitan pies, and more recent homegrown varieties like Pilsen-style, which uses Old Style beer in the dough. You can have a taste at home by ordering delivery or takeaway, or you can go to one of the greatest restaurants in the area and eat a hot, freshly baked pie. You can use this list to visit Chicago’s best pizza with your taste buds by combining New York imports and Chicago landmarks.
As the best deep dish pizza on the planet, these are also well regarded by locals and visitors. Many of these pizzerias will ship to your home, so don’t worry if you don’t have any upcoming travel plans to Chicago!
Lou Malnati’s
1120 N. State Street Chicago, IL 60610
What it really ought to be labeled as “heaven in a bowl.” Malnati’s is renowned for its chunky vine-ripened tomato sauce on top of a hot, melted cheese crust with a buttery, crispy outside. In the first deep dish pizza shop in Chicago, Lou Malnati began cooking pies in the 1940s. When he opened the first Lou Malnati pizzeria in 1971, he established his own legend.
You will no doubt locate one during your subsequent visit to Chicago given its 57 locations. While nothing compares to enjoying a hot pizza in the middle of Chicago’s Gold Coast restaurant district, this fantastic pizza can also be enjoyed in the comfort of your own home anywhere in the United States. They also ship pizza all across the country!
Pizano’s
864 N. State Street Chicago, IL, 60610
Rudy Malnati Jr. is descended from Chicago pizza legends, and making good pizza is in his blood. Chicago’s deep dish history is a fairly complex web, isn’t it? Rudy Malnati Sr. and his son Luo Malnati (yep, that Lou who went out into his own famous pizzeria) ran the aforementioned Pizzeria Uno. In 1991, Rudy Malnati Jr. founded Pizano’s and promptly continued the legendary pizza legacy he had learned from his family.
Although it is a more manageable size, Pizano’s deep dish has roots in the storied beginnings of deep dish pizzas. A significantly thinner deep dish crust is covered by a buttery delectable bite with caramelized edges and a smoother but no less delicious tomato sauce.
Their thin crust pizza, which many claims to rival their deep dish, may even be better. With four locations in Chicago, you can be sure to find one just in time for a pleasantly tasty supper. Even Oprah Winfrey has dubbed it the “greatest thin crust pizza in Chicago.”
Gino’s East
162 E Superior St Chicago, IL 60611
Chicago residents adore Gino’s pizza. Gino’s East was founded in 1966 by two Italian taxi drivers (Sam Levine and Fred Bartoli) and a friend who owned a grocery store and was weary of getting sick from the cold meat coolers. Gino’s East’s roots are in Chicago deep-dish pizza, but not in the way you might think.
For large groups, their thin crust pizza is ideal since it is crunchy and juicy, and the cheese melts in your mouth. There are four locations in Chicago, including the renowned Magnificent Mile, so there are many options.
Additionally, Gino’s East will send you a frozen pizza so you can experience it from anywhere in the United States. And if you visit one of their eateries and notice the writing on the walls, feel free to embellish it with your own creative flair! They also operate a brewery, so Gino’s East might be at the top of your list of places to eat if you’re looking for a craft beer crafted especially to go with their mouthwatering deep dish pizza.
Giordano’s
730 N Rush St Chicago, IL 60611
In 1974, Giordano’s entered the Chicago-style pizza market, and today it has 67 locations around the country. Efren and Joseph Boglio, two Italian brothers, brought their Mama Giordano’s stuffed crust pizza to Chicago’s famed South Side.
Giordano’s has a non-crunchy crust, which is quite different from the classic deep-dish form. The deep dish has a cake-like flavor rather than a pie-like flavor. The layered crust and sauce are covered in gooey cheese. Even a tiny piece is satisfying. Be ready because this pizza is substantial.
In the unlikely event that you won’t have the good fortune to visit Chicago anytime soon, Giordano’s will also deliver a frozen pie to your house.
Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder
2121 North Clark St. Chicago, IL 60614
Pizza pot pie is a specialty of Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder; cheese, toppings, and sauce are all combined in a pot and coated with triple-raised Sicilian dough before baking. The outcome is a spicy, delicious pizza combination. Even though this isn’t your average Chicago-style pizza, on the weekends there is a wait out the door to experience the splendor of this unique pizza creation.
At 2121 North Clark Street in Chicago, a three-story brick Victorian-style structure houses Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder. This structure is direct across the street from the infamous structure where the 1929 St. Valentine’s Day Massacre took place.
Spacca Napoli
1769 W. Sunnyside Ave. Chicago, IL 60640
Spacca Napoli, a Chicago-style deep dish pizza alternative, is still regarded as one of the city’s top pizzerias. Foodies or pizza connoisseurs are familiar with this location.
It stands out since it is the only Italian pizza on the list and contributed to the establishment of Neopolitan pizzerias in Chicago. Spacca Napoli, located in Ravenswood, just off the brown line and a little farther north, attracts people from all over. Come here for some traditional pizza or a date.
Pizza Friendly Pizza
1039 N Western Ave, Chicago, IL 60622
With the aid of Michelin-starred chef Noah Sandoval or Oriole and Kumiko, restaurateur Bruce Finkelman decided to transform the business model of Bite Café into one of rock and roll-inspired Sicilian pizza establishment when the COVID-19 crisis struck and forced several Chicago eateries to close. Enter Pizza Friendly Pizza, a slice store in Ukrainian Village founded on a love of pizza, music, and community. The staff uses a technique for preparing pizza that requires both patience and skill.
They carefully monitor the water temperature, bake times, and of course, the final rise, which takes at least 12 hours. Add one of the famous salads to the mix, such as The Other Salad or the Hangover Caesar (made with small gem lettuce, white anchovy Caesar, chewy croutons, and aged parmesan) (with kale, peach, white balsamic, and chevre).
Coalfire
1321 W Grand Ave. Chicago, IL 60642
This restaurant, housed in a four-flat built in 1876, has traditional elegance and rich historical elements throughout. The coal-fueled pizza oven’s temperatures reach above 1200 degrees and quickly cook these incredibly thin pies—a feat only made feasible by properly sourced coal. The outcome? Guests can add a variety of toppings to the spectacularly crunchy exterior and gratifying, chewy center of the pie. The staff here places a high value on straightforward, high-quality products, and local farms and butchers play a significant role in the process of obtaining them.
Examples include, among others, a variety of veggies from River Valley Mushroom Farm and Nichols Farm. As well as pepperoni, salumi, and pig sausage from award-winning Tempesta Artisan Salumi. Come one, come all. Whether it’s a date night, a family gathering, or a celebration with friends, this place is a go-to.
